


Rescue Mission

by 28sunflowers



Series: Rebels [1]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Inaccurate technological and hacking knowledge, M/M, Rescue, Rescue Missions, Robbery, as the title itself says lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-07-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:27:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25050895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/28sunflowers/pseuds/28sunflowers
Summary: In a world ruined by environmental catastrophes and extreme wealth concentration, attacks against the government and the rich that started out as local riots but became a global movement. Now, an unified worldwide institution runs all countries in an attempt to fight back the rebellion and reestablish the previous social order.After a few drawbacks in the civil war, the rebels decide on a risky mission: take down the world’s richest man. They hope that gaining access to his fortune could change the course of the revolution in their favor.Things go sideways after Louis Tomlinson successfully infiltrates the target mansion but gets locked in by a complex security system. As one of their top soldiers and holder of too much classified information, the rebels cannot afford to lose Tomlinson. So, they make the choice of sending one of their best technology experts, and Tomlinson’s husband, for the rescue.
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson
Series: Rebels [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1824976
Comments: 17
Kudos: 50
Collections: Prompt 1.4: Extract





	Rescue Mission

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you, [Rory](https://harryebread.tumblr.com/), for agreeing to be my beta for this fic fest and hyping up my idea, you're lovely. ♥️
> 
> This is part of a Wordplay prompt challenge for the prompt "extract". To read the amazing fics that were written by the others on this prompt, [click here](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/extract), and to see all fics written as part of the challenge (including years 1-3), [click here](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/wordplay_fic_challenge/works). You can also find the masterpost for this year’s challenge [here](https://wordplayfics.tumblr.com/post/622306139518926848/wordplay-2020-every-week-for-five-weeks-a-prompt).

The car drops Harry outside a house so big, it seems unreal. It feels like he’s walking into an alternative reality, even more so now that good housing is rarer than it was before. He stares at the grand columns hosting the place up and tries not to be angry.

It’s unbelievable that after years of recurring natural catastrophes, which successfully killed half of the world’s population and left most of the other half starving, one man could possibly own this much by himself.

Or worse, it’s unbelievable that there are starving people who still support the original global order. People who see this and don’t get drowned by rage for the unfairness of the wealth accumulation order imposed on their society.

He hears a voice calling his name, and turns around. By the right side of the house, there’s a dark green structure holding several rebels and their equipment. They are hidden from the air force by the thick foliage from the trees and still close enough to the house for efficient trips inside. Harry’s surprised that most plants around the house remain green and healthy, given how dry the weather has constantly become in the past five years. But it’s a welcomed change in scenery.

He looks at the arm waving him over and recognizes Zayn, Louis’ right hand on this particular mission. Harry walks over to the makeshift quarters.

“Malik, how long has he been in there?” He asks curtly, without any pleasantries that might be needed.

“A couple of hours.” Zayn informs him, but Harry can tell he’s downplaying the amount of time that’s passed.

“And why did it take you so long to contact me?”

“Listen, Styles, Tomlinson was very adamant about you not being involved in field work.” Zayn has the decency to look sheepish at that. “We were trying alternative methods first, but we’re scared of running out of time now.”

Harry takes a deep breath to calm himself down. Of course Louis was trying to not get him involved. That stupid asshole. Harry accepts that Zayn was following orders and trying to do right by Louis.

“Okay. Update me on everything.”

So Zayn does. He explains that after successfully breaking into the mansion, Louis had to go to the study, where they thought most of personal and professional details were stored. Upon opening a lock there, a security system the team was not aware of got turned on. They haven’t managed to even find it with their computers, much less hack it. All they know is that it locked Louis inside the room. All attempts at breaking him out were futile, and their men inside haven’t been successful in finding any other clues that may lead to disarming the system.

A separate security system means Louis hit the jackpot, but without any information they don’t know if it contacted the authorities to alert them of the intrusion. They could be attacked by the government or one of their supporting militias at any moment, putting the lives of a dozen high level personnel at risk.

“Basically, what you’re saying is that you know nothing. Roger that.” Harry concludes once Zayn’s done.

Zayn frowns at him. “We are trying –”

“Yes, I know.” Harry sighs, thinking over his options. “Bring all your men out so I can ask some questions. And give me a blueprint of the mansion, along with all the data you’ve gathered on the main security system. I’m literally going in blind right now.”

Zayn gives off some orders around, and people start moving. Soon enough, he’s given a map of the property and a computer hacked into the house’s main program.

“Do you have any way to contact Louis?” Harry questions.

“His radio goes on and off, the walls must be revested to distort the signal. But that’s our only shot. The room is soundproof, we haven’t been able to talk to him through the door.”

“Okay. Someone needs to keep on trying to communicate. Information from inside is essential and I want to talk to him.”

Harry gets busy talking to people. He finds out most of the first floor has been thoroughly searched already, and nothing useful was found. Harry instructed Jones and Rowland, who seemed to be the most observant duo out of the group responsible for the search, to go back and search for places that weren’t in the blueprint. They already found some underground tunnels and a room adjacent to the library, but Harry’s sure there must be more they aren’t seeing.

They also find all the energy sources for the house, including a generator on a guesthouse right behind the mansion and near the study Louis’ locked in. Harry’s hopeful that might lead them somewhere, so he sends another pair to try and find what the generator is powering.

He sits down by the computer connected to the house’s main security system, deciding to use his time trying to find a link to the secondary one. They must have a way to communicate with each other, it wouldn’t make sense to be completely independent.

Harry gets lost in it for almost forty minutes, until Zayn walks into the little base.

“Styles, we got him on the radio.” Zayn tells him, and Harry hastily takes the small device from Zayn’s hand.

“Louis.” He says urgently into the microphone.

“Harry, I –”

“No. I don’t wanna hear it. I need you to tell me anything you know about the security system in the study, and describe the locking mechanism on the exits.”

“Okay.” Louis agrees. It sounds like he wants to say more on the matter, but he knows they don’t have time to waste. Louis’ lack of fighting brings Harry’s walls down.

“Are you alright?” Harry asks, letting his worry for Louis’ wellbeing show for the first time since stepping into the property.

“Yes, I don’t think it’s programmed to harm, just contain me until someone comes.”

Harry lets out a relieved breath. “Good. I’ll get you out of there.”

“I know.” Louis says, and Harry doesn’t have to be there to know he’s smiling.

After a beat of silence, Louis’ voice comes back on.

“Maybe if you cut down the power, and every backup generator they must have, we can break me out.” He suggests.

“Too risky. It will probably just lock you in further. We’re trying to find the system’s motherboard physically first, so I can hack and disarm it.” Harry explains.

He thought of shutting everything down, but Louis’ descriptions of the locks make it seem that they will only open with energy, that there is no manual mechanism to open them.

“Alright.” Louis sounds confident, and that reflects how much he trusts Harry. It’s frightening. Harry can’t fail.

“I need you to bring that study upside down. It could be in there.” Harry instructs.

“Roger that.” Harry can hear some rustling in the background, which probably means Louis is already starting to look around.

“Start from one of the locked exits, if you can find the directions of the cable, it may lead you somewhere.”

The moving sounds stop for a second. “Anything else?”

“Be careful.” Harry pleads quietly.

“I always am.” Louis reassures him, but they both know it’s not true.

“Harry,” Louis restarts hesitantly, “if the government comes, please leave with the group. Don’t get caught with me.”

Harry closes his eyes. He doesn’t want to think of a scenario where he doesn’t succeed in getting Louis out of that house, where Louis doesn’t sleep next to him on their assigned bed.

“It won’t come down to that.” He tries, but it sounds weak on his own ears. He knows they’ve already run out of time. Everything now is extra luck.

“Promise me.” Louis pressures.

“I promise.” Harry says, and he hopes he never has to fulfil it. “I love you.”

“I love you too. Call me back in an hour for updates.” Louis says, then there’s a buzz coming from the radio indicating that the other side turned off their equipment.

Harry puts the device on the table in the center of the tent, and grabs the computer again to finish his search. Another thirty minutes pass before any good news comes.

Zayn walks in to inform him the crew found out the generator is powering a room two floors under the study, but it doesn’t show in the blueprint and it hasn’t been found yet. Going by the location, it should be accessible by the cellar. They’ve already relocated there to look for the hidden entrance.

By the time Harry and Zayn make it downstairs, a pillar to the left of the open space is displaced, giving way to a small passageway. Jones is inspecting it for any traps similar to the one in the study. Harry joins her, and it doesn’t seem like there are any lock systems here.

As soon as he’s deemed safe enough, Harry grabs a lantern and makes his way in. The passage leads him to a narrow room. He finds a light switch by the entrance and it turns on a LED light right on top of the door. The whole space is covered from the floor to the roof in electronic gadgets. Harry takes a quick look around to try and disqualify gadgets that won’t be useful to him.

Zayn joins him a minute later, and whistles softly. “Wow, this is a lot.”

“Yeah.” Harry agrees.

“Where do you want to start?” Zayn asks, waiting for Harry to take the lead.

Harry points to three big rectangles, one in each wall that doesn’t have a door. “I think they should be control boards, or at the very least cable ones.”

He stands in front of the one to his left, and finds out the lid is easy to open. Inside, a screen takes up the top half of the rectangle, while buttons, a microphone and speakers sit underneath. It looks simple to unhook to connect to the cables underneath.

Harry goes through the motions carefully, giving sparse instructions to Zayn, who watches attentively. Harry connects the computer to the panel, successfully accessing information on what it controls, even if he didn’t take over the actions themselves yet.

The first one they try commands the guesthouses, so Harry leaves it alone. While he unhooks the wires, Zayn starts dismantling the second board. Harry is halfway through fixing the cables into the computer when a voice startles them from the door.

“Malik.” A woman Harry doesn’t know calls out.

“Yes, Lee?”

“There’s been some development in our situation. Can I talk to you?” She asks politely, but her tone makes it clear she means Harry shouldn’t hear it.

Zayn looks back and forth between them, then pats Harry’s shoulder once.

“I’ll be right back.” He says before following Lee out.

Harry shrugs off any immediate worry, knowing he has to focus on his task.

The cables connect, making the computer’s screen blink a few times, and then it displays the system’s information. It’s for the study Louis is locked in.

Harry releases a deep breath, and rolls his neck and arms to take some tension out. He sits straighter, bringing the computer onto his lap for better access. Hacking is something he’s good at. He can do this.

The security system is advanced, and disarming it might take more time than they can afford right now. But Zayn hasn’t come back yet, so he figures he is not in an extreme rush. He puts the computer down, to let the software run its course, and stands up to examine the wiring with more care.

Harry can hear someone coming by, and then he hears them speaking from the door.

“Styles, there’s been a sudden update.” It’s Zayn.

Harry hums for him to keep going, not taking his eyes off of the panel.

“We have good reason to believe the government is on their way. I’m taking everyone out, to reduce casualties to the minimum.” Zayn sounds upset, but both of them know that’s normal protocol in a situation like this.

Harry feels frozen in place. He looks at the computer, and the software has only managed to read 17% of the system’s code.

“Shit.” Fear surges through Harry and his heartbeat speeds up.

“Styles, if you can’t figure it out in fifteen minutes, get out of here. You can’t help Tomlinson if you get caught with him.” Zayn tells him, but it only makes Harry feel worse.

Anxiety is threatening to bring Harry’s heart out of his chest, and the air in the room feels denser, harder to breath in. He brings his hands up to his face but his arms feel heavy and his hands are shaking. Fifteen minutes.

“Styles, you –” Zayn halts. He grabs Harry’s face so they are making eye contact. “Harry. Harry, don’t panic. You have to think. There has to be another option.”

Harry takes a few deep breaths, ordering himself to calm down. He looks back to the open board he was examining.

“Okay, I’m gonna do this manually. I think if I cut the wires in sequence, it will disarm the system and let Louis out. It’s not 100% sure, but it’s better than nothing.” He says, and he can hear the insecurity in his own voice.

At that, Zayn straightens up and turns back into a high ranking rebel.

“I’m taking everyone out while you figure it out. As soon as you cut them, you run. I’ll let Louis know to meet you in the tunnel underneath the second guest house, to the left of the mansion. If he doesn’t arrive in five minutes, you flee by yourself. From the tunnels, you have access to underground sewage. Go as far as you can before coming back up, then contact us for extraction.” He instructs Harry seriously, leaving no space for questioning it. “Do you understand?”

Harry nods his head. Yes, he can do that.

“Yes. Go.” He confirms.

“Good luck, mate. See you soon.” Zayn squeezes his arm, and then retreats back into the cellar.

The team is probably gathering everything for a swift evacuation they are all trained to do. Saving Louis is now up to him, solely. Harry can feel a tear stream down his face, so he wipes at it hastily and huffs at himself. He cannot spiral out of control now. Louis needs him more than ever.

He tries waiting for the computer to access the system, but when the program only advances to 20% in the next ten minutes, he gives up. Harry unhooks his computer and packs everything up quickly. Then he takes the plier he left out of the back and stands by the open panel.

_Blue one, blue two, green._

Harry cuts the first blue line. He waits a few seconds and, when no immediate reaction occurs, he cuts the second one.

He hesitates, the plier hovering over the green wire. It’s their last chance to succeed.

He cuts it and steps back from the board. The screen still connected to the panel shuts down, and it’s all Harry can do to hope it means he triumphed.

A siren sound coming from the main security system springs Harry into action. He runs back into the cellar, finding the small door that leads to the tunnels under the carpet. There’s no ladder, so he jumps down.

Still holding into the plier, he runs until he hits a crossroad. Remembering Zayn said he was to meet Louis under the guesthouse to the left of the mansion, he picks his pace back up in that direction. Harry arrives in a large round chamber that leads to other tunnels, and he guesses it’s his and Louis’ meeting point.

His wristwatch marks 18:23, and he tells himself he can wait until the time hits an even 30.

Harry distracts himself by checking he got everything on his bag, and turning off all electronic gadgets. Three minutes later, he hears running steps coming in his direction from the tunnel he came from. Harry looks up and sees Louis’ figure arriving.

_Thank god._

Louis goes straight into his arms, and Harry sags in relief against his hold. Tears are threatening to spill out of his eyes again, but he holds them back.

“Don’t ever do that again.” He mumbles against Louis’ shoulder.

“I’m sorry. Thank you for saving me.” Louis replies playfully, but Harry can hear the slight tremble in his voice.

Harry grabs Louis’ face between his hands and brings their mouths together for a chaste kiss, then he steps back.

“Do you know which direction we should go?” Harry asks, still holding onto Louis.

“Right one takes us to the sewage lines faster, maybe 10 minutes.” Louis informs him.

“This place is too big.” Harry puts the bag on his back properly, and waits for Louis to start his way.

“It did cost 165 million dollars back in the day.”

Harry hums. That’s absurd, but there’s no time to dwell on it now.

Louis picks up a pace running, and Harry follows him. They eventually find a small door to the side, and Louis stops in front of it.

“Here we are. If we follow it for a few hours at a fast walking pace, we should get far enough to be able to safely call for Zayn to extract us.” Louis speaks as he starts to unlock the door.

“Alright, keep leading the way. I trust you.” Harry helps Louis turn the big round handle until the door opens.

Louis rewards him with a bright smile for that, and motions for him to go through it first.

Harry does, and as he steps into the new space, his boots make a squishing sound. He looks down and sees the floor is covered by a gooey substance. “Gross.”

Louis snorts, but doesn’t say anything, just steps in right behind Harry and closes the door behind him. “Let’s go?”

“Yes, let’s get home.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you everyone for reading! 
> 
> If you liked it, consider leaving kudos and comments! Feedback is very welcome and encouraged <3
> 
> Link to the tumblr post [here](https://vintageumbroshirt.tumblr.com/post/622909421555777536/rescue-mission-by-28sunflowers-harry-styleslouis). If you reblog it, I'll love you forever.


End file.
